Jail jammers a non-starter

The March-end deadline set by Bhondsi Jail authorities to install mobile jammers in the facility is about to lapse, but the state prisons department headquarters in Panchkula is yet to make a move to get the devices installed.TNN | March 31, 2016, 16:02 IST

Gurgaon: The March-end deadline set by Bhondsi Jail authorities to install mobile jammers in the facility is about to lapse, but the state prisons department headquarters in Panchkula is yet to make a move to get the devices installed.

They had conducted a survey of the premises a few months ago, but the project has been hanging fire with higher authorities ever since.

A total of 35 mobile phones and 38 SIM cards have been recovered this year alone. Most handsets and SIM cards were recovered from common areas, making it difficult to trace the owners.

DG (prisons) Parminder Rai had announced in November that the jammers would be installed by end-March. The prison department planned to install 14 jammers approved by Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW). Rai had even announced that the jammers would be connected to all telecom service providers, so that every mobile connection could be traced. A Hyderabad-based company was chosen to supply the jammers. However, jail authorities have received no intimation from headquarters since then.

Bhondsi authorities said the delay is not a big worry, and that the project will take another month to complete. "Though the survey was done a few months ago, we're yet to receive details of the jammers. We expect the project to be completed soon. Hopefully, the delay should not be for more than a month," said Ramesh Kumar, deputy superintendent, Bhondsi Jail.

Bhondsi Jail has been the at the centre of several conspiracies and criminal activities, with hardened inmates controlling gang operations outside the prison walls using easily-smuggled mobile phones. In July 2015, a shootout on MG Road, meant to kill gangster Rakesh Hayatpur but claiming the lives of three passersby, was traced back to a criminal named Sandeep alias Dabbu, lodged in the jail.